FLAC extends condolences to family of Ian Candy, one of the organisation's founders
5 November 2026
FLAC was saddened to learn of the death of Ian Candy, one of the organisation’s founders.
Four UCD law students, David Byrne, Denis McCullough, Vivian Lavan and Ian Candy, founded FLAC in 1969 after attending a conference on legal education in Trinity College Dublin. The organisation had the twin aims of providing legal assistance to those who could not otherwise afford it and to persuade the Government to provide a comprehensive system of civil legal aid.
In 2019, during FLAC’s 50th anniversary, President Michael D. Higgins noted that “the establishment of FLAC in 1969 by four students wishing to use their skills and knowledge to provide legal advice to those who could not afford to pay for it was not just an act of great generosity on the part of Denis McCullough, Ian Candy, David Byrne and Vivian Lavan but also a profound ethical action, a critical moment in Ireland’s journey towards a genuinely inclusive democracy, a journey that is unfinished.”
We extend our condolences to Ian Candy’s family, friends and colleagues. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.”